Voices from all corners of the world for the Queen Elisabeth Competition
The Queen Elisabeth Competition is focused on singing for the ninth time in its history. This Belgian competition has acquired international acclaim. This year, a jury selected 55 candidates from 18 different countries.
The Queen Elisabeth Competition is organised according to a four-year cycle. Each year it focuses on something different: violin, piano, cello and now singing. The international competition is famous for being one of the world's most demanding music competitions. It prepares talented musicians for an international career. The competition was founded in 1937 by Queen Elisabeth of Belgium. The focus on singing began back in 1988, exactly thirty years ago. Since that time many Belgian singers have been very successful: Werner Van Mechelen, Anne Cambier, Thomas Blondelle, Jodie Devos and Chiara Skerath all reached the final.
There are 55 candidates in total, coming from 18 different countries, and including 6 from Belgium. The first public round took place on 1 and 2 May, followed by the semi-final on 4 and 5 May with the 24 remaining candidates.Two Belgians can go to the final: Charlotte Wajnberg from Antwerp and Marianne Croux who has the dual French-Belgian citizenship. The winner will be announced on 12 May. During the first round and the semi-final the candidates perform with a piano accompaniment. The finalists are then accompanied by the Symphony orchestra of the federal opera house, La Monnaie conducted by Alain Altinoglu. The jury judges the candidates on their stage performances, singing technique and the singing itself. During the last singing edition in 2014, the Belgian Jodie Devos was awarded a prestigious second place. But… who will now follow on from the Korean singer Su-mi Hwang?